Sweden · county
Norrbotten population 2026
Norrbotten has 248,620 people on the latest official figure, for 1 January 2025, 140 more than a year earlier (+0.06%). It is 15th of Sweden’s 21 counties by population, home to 2.3% of Sweden’s people.
If last year’s change continues: about 249 thousand by 1 July 2026. That is our arithmetic, not an official figure.
Norrbotten in numbers
- Population
- 249 thousand 1 January 2025
- Change in a year
- +0.06% +140 people
- Change since 2020
- −0.59% from 250 thousand
- Share of Sweden
- 2.3% 15th of 21 counties
- Population density
- 2per km² 112,027 km²
That is about as many people as Sao Tome and Principe (245 thousand).
Population of Norrbotten by year
› Show the numbers as a table
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 248,545 |
| 2013 | 248,637 |
| 2014 | 249,436 |
| 2015 | 249,987 |
| 2016 | 249,733 |
| 2017 | 250,570 |
| 2018 | 251,295 |
| 2019 | 250,497 |
| 2020 | 250,093 |
| 2021 | 249,614 |
| 2022 | 249,693 |
| 2023 | 249,177 |
| 2024 | 248,480 |
| 2025 | 248,620 |
| Year | Population | Change | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 248,620 | +140 | +0.06% |
| 2024 | 248,480 | −697 | −0.28% |
| 2023 | 249,177 | −516 | −0.21% |
| 2022 | 249,693 | +79 | +0.03% |
| 2021 | 249,614 | −479 | −0.19% |
| 2020 | 250,093 | −404 | −0.16% |
| 2019 | 250,497 | −798 | −0.32% |
| 2018 | 251,295 | +725 | +0.29% |
| 2017 | 250,570 | +837 | +0.34% |
| 2016 | 249,733 | −254 | −0.10% |
| 2015 | 249,987 | +551 | +0.22% |
| 2014 | 249,436 | +799 | +0.32% |
| 2013 | 248,637 | +92 | +0.04% |
| 2012 | 248,545 | – | – |
Norrbotten among Sweden’s counties
Full ranking →| # | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stockholm County | 2,473,307 | +0.75% | 23.4% | 148 |
| 2 | Västra Götaland | 1,772,821 | +0.33% | 16.7% | 52 |
| 3 | Skåne | 1,428,626 | +0.48% | 13.5% | 84 |
| 4 | Östergötland | 472,446 | +0.03% | 4.5% | 32 |
| 5 | Uppsala County | 407,912 | +0.82% | 3.9% | 34 |
| 6 | Jönköping County | 370,009 | +0.31% | 3.5% | 32 |
| 7 | Halland | 345,074 | +0.39% | 3.3% | 40 |
| 8 | Örebro County | 308,375 | +0.08% | 2.9% | 32 |
| 9 | Södermanland | 301,542 | −0.13% | 2.8% | 35 |
| 10 | Dalarna | 286,546 | −0.25% | 2.7% | 10 |
| 11 | Gävleborg | 284,558 | −0.38% | 2.7% | 11 |
| 12 | Värmland | 283,384 | −0.06% | 2.7% | 13 |
| 13 | Västmanland | 281,158 | +0.12% | 2.7% | 50 |
| 14 | Västerbotten | 281,138 | +0.86% | 2.7% | 4 |
| 15 | Norrbotten | 248,620 | +0.06% | 2.3% | 2 |
| 16 | Kalmar County | 246,352 | −0.13% | 2.3% | 12 |
| 17 | Västernorrland | 241,458 | −0.28% | 2.3% | 9 |
| 18 | Kronoberg | 203,351 | −0.16% | 1.9% | 22 |
| 19 | Blekinge | 157,223 | −0.47% | 1.5% | 23 |
| 20 | Jämtland | 132,839 | +0.20% | 1.3% | 3 |
| 21 | Gotland | 60,971 | −0.10% | 0.6% | 4 |
Largest cities in Norrbotten
City proper, not the wider metro area; latest figure in GeoNames (CC BY 4.0), so years differ.
- Luleå77,832
- Piteå23,067
- Kiruna17,037
- Boden16,830
Questions
What is the population of Norrbotten in 2026?
Is Norrbotten’s population growing or shrinking?
How does Norrbotten rank in Sweden?
What is the population density of Norrbotten?
What is the largest city in Norrbotten?
Source and method
Eurostat, population on 1 January by NUTS 3 region (demo_r_pjanaggr3). Eurostat reuse policy (CC BY 4.0). Total area, Wikidata. Eurostat updates regional populations once a year. Ranks, shares and changes are our arithmetic on the published figures. National figures can differ from the UN’s projection for Sweden, which uses a different method. The 2026 figure above carries last year’s change forward; it does not come from the source.
Cite this page: Norrbotten population, Eurostat, 1 January 2025. GlobeMetrics, https://globemetrics.org/world-population/sweden/norrbotten/
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